One of the best ways for kids to spend their summers is at a summer camp.
Summer camps in the US are an institution. They got their start way back in the 1800s as a means for kids to escape into the great outdoors.
Their main goals were to enrich all aspects of a child’s being, fostering independence, physical health, and social skills.
Since then, they’ve grown into a huge industry unto themselves, with more than six million kids registering every summer.
A trip to camp is an opportunity to make new friends, learn important life lessons, and try new activities.
Camp is a place to get away from it all and focus on getting physical and being creative, things that have been proven to have a myriad of benefits for all ages.
Beyond archery, swimming, and hiking, which one of these summer camp activities is your favorite?
1. Friendship Bracelets
You knew this had to be the number one summer camp activity on the list.
Everyone who’s gone off to camp has come back with a few of these on their arm.
Try updating them with a cute chevron pattern or little hearts.
For those with advanced skills, you can even weave beads into them.
2. Outdoor Twister
Want to improve hand-eye coordination, take advantage of the summer sun, and have a few laughs? Try outdoor Twister!
Cut a giant circle out of the bottom of a cardboard box, about a foot in diameter.
Use it as a stencil to paint the classic red, blue, yellow, and green dots on the ground and you’re ready to go!
3. Beaded Bubble Wands
This is a great summer camp activity for kids of all ages.
Grab a bunch of wooden dowels, pipe cleaners, and a bag of beads. Make sure your glue gun is handy because you’ll be using it a lot.
Make a loop with the pipe cleaner and start stringing beads along.
You can go the fairy-princess route and decorate it with tons of sparkles or use alphabet beads to spell out a name.
Once you’re finished, twist the end around the wooden dowel and hot glue it in place. Voila – you’ve got a custom made beaded bubble blower!
4. Hallway Maze
Sometimes, a summer storm blows through and you’re stuck inside. There’s still plenty of summer camp activities you can do!
Try making a hallway maze. It’s easy to make – but hard to get out of!
Tape streamers, string, or lengths of toilet paper in different ways to the walls of a hallway making sure they stretch across the hall.
The goal is for the kids to make it through the maze without tearing the paper in a set amount of time.
5. Paper Plate Hats
Another great rainy day art project that’s easy for kids of all ages to do is making paper plate hats.
Using the edge of the paper plate as the brim of the hat, draw a shape on the main plate area. Think about a heart, a star, or some bunny ears.
Color in and cut out your design, then flip it up and put your new hat on your head.
6. Scrabble In A Bag
This is one of those summer camp activities that builds brain power and keeps things quiet if you need a calm transitional activity.
Break the large group into smaller ones and give each a bag with single letters inside.
One person has to shake the bag, reach inside, grab seven letters, and make as many words from the seven letters that they can in a short amount of time.
7. A New Spin On Rock Painting
With spin rock painting, kids make a unique piece of art that they can take home with them. It will remind them of all the fun they had at camp.
First, gather up some smooth river rocks. Next, get a salad spinner and some paints.
Bright tempera paints and some squeeze bottles work great for this summer camp activity.
Place the rocks in the spinner, close the lid, and start swirling. The rocks will be coated with beautiful colors in a unique pattern!
8. Cardboard Puppets
This is one summer camp activity that can go in a lot of different directions depending on your kids’ ages and skill set.
Gather up any random cardboard you’ve got – boxes, tubes, etc. – and give them free reign to create a puppet with it.
They can create a traditional hand puppet, a rod puppet, or a marionette if you have the string.
You can even turn this into a camp-wide contest or have the kids put on a show!
9. Yarn Twig Mobile
This one is a bit complicated, but once they get going, the kids can handle it.
Collect a few twigs from around the camp.
Tie a piece of multicolored yarn to one end and then start wrapping until you have the twig completely covered.
Arrange your covered twigs into whatever shape you like and connect them with more yarn. Use a stone or a pinecone to keep the bottom of your mobile weighed down.
10. Bird Feeder
Connect kids to nature with one of the most fun and easiest summer camp activities ever – making a bird feeder.
Take a handful of birdseed, two tablespoons of flour and two tablespoons of water then mix it together.
Press the mixture into a cookie cutter. There are lots of cool shapes out there, so look for cookie cutters the kids can have fun with.
Press a string into the body of the mixture and leave a little loop at the top so you can easily hang it on a tree when it’s dry.
Which Are Your Favorite Summer Camp Activites?
Did any of these projects bring back good memories? Are you excited for your kids to try them too?
Let USA Camp Association find the right camp with the best activities for your kids.
We’ve got the knowledge, experience, and network to make sure we connect you with the camp that’s best for your kids.